


First // Last

by CrimsonVoid



Series: Shallura Week 2018 [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Shallura Week 2018
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-16
Updated: 2018-09-16
Packaged: 2019-07-13 11:03:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,474
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16016579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrimsonVoid/pseuds/CrimsonVoid
Summary: Shallura Week 2018, Day One – First // LastThe first time Allura feels Shiro’s Quintessence in the Black Lion vs. the last





	First // Last

       A solemn quiet lingers in the air as five sets of eyes stare mournfully at the slumped, unresponsive form of the Black Lion. She has not moved since the battle with Zarkon; not the slightest sign of awakening shown in any form as they’ve waited, breath held, for something – _anything_ , that might assure them of Shiro’s safety.  But she has given them nothing, and with Keith’s searches proving fruitless each time, Allura is slowly beginning to lose hope that they might ever see the Black Paladin again. It is not a reality she wishes to admit possible **_(_** _the very thought of it sends a sharper pain through her heart than she’d thought it could_ **_)_** , but she has always been one to prefer facts over misplaced hope, and it has been _weeks_ now. Surely, if he were out there and able to come back to them, he would.

       But he has not, and even though she is loathe to admit it, they cannot linger like this any longer. Their fight to take back the universe from the Galra is still not yet over, and Voltron is needed if they are to ever have a chance of finishing what’s been started. A new pilot must be found for the Black Lion.

       There is a gnawing sensation in her gut as Allura approaches the Lion. She knows, in theory, that she  _ should  _ be able to pilot her; her very lifeforce is tied to each and every Lion, it has been since her birth, and she has always felt a connection to them all her own. It should work; and yet, there is a small part of her that does not want it to. The Lion is not truly  _ hers  _ to bond with, not hers to fly. It does not feel right. But she cannot hesitate, cannot delay; and it is with only a half-glance over her shoulder at the Paladins that she climbs the Lion’s maw and enters the cockpit.

       It is dim and dark inside, the air stale from having been left to sit empty and unused. The only light to see by is what spills in from the windows, and it is not much, but Allura manages to make it to the seat without stumbling too badly. She rests a hand on the arm, and before her legs can seize up and refuse to move an inch further, she turns and sits, hands reaching for the controls and grasping tight.

       A moment passes. Two. Three, and then she feels the hum of Quintessence beneath her palms as the Lion’s interior lights up. The dread in her stomach flares, and for a moment grief threatens to overcome the Princess then and there; she can feel the tears stinging behind her eyes, and she squeezes them shut tight in an effort to keep it at bay.   


       She goes to lift her hands from the controls, but then the Quintessence shifts. It almost seems to _change_ , but not quite – Allura can still feel the Black Lion’s energy in full, strong and powerful as it thrums through it and brings it to life. But there is additional Quintessence, she notices now – energy that had not been there previously, and one that she is slightly less familiar with… but one that she would still recognize with certainty regardless.  
“Shiro?”  


       Her voice is  _ painfully  _ small in the quiet, but the Quintessence  _ surges, _ almost as if responding to her utterance of his name. Her heart leaps; it  _ is  _ him. She knows it. She would not be able to feel his Quintessence if he were well and truly gone. It feels so close, so  _ tangible _ , almost as if she could open her eyes and he would be standing there in front of her, and for a foolish moment she lets herself hope that he will be—   


       But then her eyes drift open and he is not, and she knows it was foolish to hope but she cannot help the way her heart sinks despite it.

       The Quintessence surges again, and Allura forces herself to let out the breath she’d been holding. She shoves her disappointment aside, letting firm resolve take its’ place. It is, at the very least, an assurance – that Shiro is still out there somewhere, and that wherever he is, he is  _ safe _ .

       And they  _ will  _ find him one day.  _ She  _ will find him. 

* * *

       Her heart is pounding in her chest as Allura stares at Shiro’s body as Keith lays him on the ground. Or, rather, the clone’s body; for they know now that the Shiro in their midst had been naught but an imposter. She knows, now, where their Shiro has been all this time – inside the Black Lion, his Quintessence preserved and contained alongside hers even when his body ceased to exist on the mortal plane. It is, Allura thinks, nothing short of a  _ miracle _ .

       Guilt wracks her to her core, though. How could she have been so  _ blind _ , to what had been right before her very eyes? She had felt Shiro’s Quintessence within the Black Lion from the very first time it had responded under her touch; had felt it every time since, a warmth there to lend comfort through every mission she carried out. She had though it just a lingering after-effect of his presence; perhaps the Lion reaching out to wherever he was to let Allura know he lived.

       How  _ wrong _ she had been. He had been so close, just barely within her reach.

       If only she had realized sooner.

       She can hear the others talking, trying to decide what to do, but she tunes them out; instead casting a glance over her shoulder at the form of the Black Lion looming behind them before looking back to the barely-breathing form laid out on the ground. Perhaps it is not too late. Perhaps… there is still a  _ chance _ .

       She rises to her feet, ignoring the way the group falls silent as they watch her make her way towards the Lion. She lowers her head at Allura’s approach, almost as if  _ waiting _ , and Allura doesn’t hesitate in the slightest when she places her hands on the cool metal of the reaches in, searching for Shiro’s energy tangled up with the Lion’s.

       It comes easily, almost  _ eagerly _ , to her touch; surging through the metal and gathering where her hands rest, streaming into her through her palms and filling her vision with purple light. She feels it gather in her chest, warm and tight and so much  _ stronger _ than it had seemed while still within the Black Lion. It is almost  _ too _ much; the feeling of his soul held so closely to her own. Her heart skips a beat and her lungs tighten, and she knows she cannot contain him like this for much longer – to do so could be perilous to them both.

       Kneeling beside Keith, Allura gently shifts Shiro’s head into her lap, her fingertips coming to rest at his temples. His spirit seems to swell at the touch, rising within her before streaming out and into his body. The purple in her vision fades, and when it fades from Shiro as well she can do nothing more than hold her breath and wait for him to open his eyes.

       A moment passes. Two. Three, and then they are flung open without warning, bright purple light shining out before it fades and he lurches up, gasping and coughing before slumping into Keith, knocking the Red Paladin slightly as he went to catch the other and prop him up. They wait in tense silence as he catches his breath, gaze flitting lethargically from one face to another before landing on Allura.

       “You found me.”

       Relief flows through her veins at the sound of his voice, as hoarse of a whisper as it is. It is so great a feeling that she finds she cannot speak, her heart lodged in her throat; and she is thankful when Keith voices what they no doubt are all thinking – she knows for certain it is at the forefront of her mind, at least.

       Her voice does not elude her for long, though. “Rest,” she murmurs; and he does, eyes falling shut and a deep sigh escaping him as the fatigue overcomes him. Keith shifts then, as if looking for somewhere to lay Shiro, and Allura opens her arms without thought; allowing him to transfer the other Paladin’s weight against her instead before standing to discuss the next plan of action with the others. Allura knows she should be paying attention and participating, but she cannot tear her attention away from Shiro. He is  _ here _ , really and truly _ here _ and in her arms and  _ alive _ , and for the first time in a long time her heart feels light and and free.

       They found him.  _ She _ found him. 

       Just like she said she would.


End file.
